England friendly with no losers

IT may be a friendly, but Sven-Goran Eriksson is keen to protect his impressive record at the City of Manchester Stadium on Sunday. Eriksson has won eight home league games out of eight, plus a Carling Cup tie against Norwich, since taking charge of the Blues in the summer.

IT may be a friendly, but Sven-Goran Eriksson is keen to protect his impressive record at the City of Manchester Stadium on Sunday.

Eriksson has won eight home league games out of eight, plus a Carling Cup tie against Norwich, since taking charge of the Blues in the summer.

His only England game at the Blues' home was a roaring success too, as they beat Iceland 6-1 in a friendly there just before Euro 2004.

In fact, the only one of Eriksson's 11 games at Eastlands that he hasn't won was a pre-season friendly against Valencia in August, which the Blues lost 1-0.

But tomorrow, he will take to the away dug-out for the first time when he coaches a Rest of the World side as they face a team of England legends led by Terry Venables.

The match has been organised by the PFA as part of its centenary celebrations, to help the players' union in its bid to raise £1m for a rehabilitation and physiotherapy unit at the new Manchester Children's Hospital, under the banner of its `One Goal, One Million' campaign.

An entire cast list of legends have signed up to play in the match, including Alan Shearer, Peter Beardsley, Teddy Sheringham, Neville Southall, Andrei Kanchelskis, Gianfranco Zola and Ruud Gullit.

"It's a very, very good cause," Eriksson said.

"The names I've seen on the team-lists are fantastic. I hope a lot of people will come to see the game and support the charity.

"I'm looking forward to seeing some familiar faces again. It should be a really good game.

Honour

"It is an honour to be asked to take charge of the Rest of the World team. It will seem a little strange playing against England, but I will be working with some fantastic players.

"Hopefully, I will have an advantage because the game is being played at my home ground!"

Former Chelsea ace Robert di Matteo is looking forward to being on Eriksson's team for the first time. The two crossed swords in Serie A in the mid-1990s when Eriksson was in charge of Sampdoria and di Matteo was playing for Lazio.

"I've come across Sven a few times in my career," di Matteo said. "He's a great manager and a nice person, and he's doing a good job at City.

"I remember he got a lot of stick before the season started, because of all the foreign players he brought in. But he has got City playing good football.

"It's fair to say that City did not expect to be so high in the table at this stage of the season. But I think they can carry it on.

"They seem to have a solid defence and midfield, which you need to be successful."

Tomorrow's extravaganza will see the football legends supported by a host of television stars, as there will be a celebrity warm-up match ahead of the main event, featuring guests from Coronation Street, Hollyoaks and Dream Team.

The two games will be broadcast to a worldwide audience of millions.

Professionals across the country have already made personal donations totalling more than £400,000, and Team England - the official charity of the England players - have adopted the `One Goal, One Million' appeal as one of their official partners.

PFA's Gordon Taylor said: "We wanted to make a difference and decided to dedicate our Centenary to a worthwhile cause and there can't be any better reason than to help improve the lives of young children.

"We decided it would be a fitting tribute if we tried to raise £1m to build a rehabilitation unit at the new Manchester Children's Hospital.

TICKETS are still available with corporate packages also on sale. For tickets call 0870 062 1894 or pay on the turnstiles on the day. For corporate enquiries call 0870 062 4141.